On this Day in History – 26 November

Saturday, 26 November 1910

The Union Buildings is the seat of the South African government and is situated in the capital city, Pretoria, now known as Tshwane. It was designed by Sir Herbert Baker in 1908 and the building process began in 1909. On 26 November, 1910, the cornerstone was laid, with completion intended for 1913.

The construction of the Union Buildings utilised the services of approximately 1 265 artisans and labourers. Almost fourteen million bricks were used for the interior office walls. South African stone was used throughout the building, with most of the mountain stone quarried on the site. The hill on which the building was constructed was initially owned by Andries Francois du Toit, Pretoria’s first Magistrate. He then sold the land to Stephanus Jacobus Meintjies, after whom the hill is named (Meintjieskop).

The Union Buildings was commissioned as part of the establishment of the Union of South Africa. Prior to this, South Africa had been divided into two British colonies and two independent Boer republics, which were all unified into one country after the Anglo Boer War. The two wings of the building are joined, symbolizing the unification of a divided people. From the mid-twentieth century, the Union Buildings has served as a location for political protests, particularly during the apartheid era. One of the most well-known marches on the Union Buildings was the 1956 Women’s March protesting against proposed passes for black women.

Since South Africa’s emergence as a democracy, the Union Buildings has become a location for commemorating historical events and celebrating South Africa’s heritage.Tourists to Pretoria frequently visit the Union Buildings and enjoy viewing the war memorial, the statues, the sprawling gardens (planted with only indigenous plants) and the breathtaking view over the city.

Friday, 26 November 1971

The Black Affairs Administration Act 45 of 1971 commences. This Act provided for black self-government in townships. It was repealed by section 69 of the Black Communities Development Act 4 of 1984.

Wednesday, 26 November 1975

On an illegal trip to South Africa with a false passport, a well-known Afrikaans writer named Breyten Breytenbach was betrayed, arrested and sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment for high treason under the Terrorism Act 83 of 1967 by the Pretoria Supreme Court. He pleaded guilty to charges of entering South Africa to start an organisation to be called ‘Atlas’ or ‘Okhela’, a resistance group fighting apartheid in exile that was intended to be the White wing of the banned African National Congress. He remained a political prisoner until his release in December 1982 amid strong international intervention.

Wednesday, 26 November 1980

At the end of the Soekmekaar and Silverton trial in Pretoria, three young Black men, Noimbithi Johnson Lubisi, 28, Petrus Tsepo Mashigo, 20, and Naphtali Manani (age unreported) were found guilty of high treason, the murder of two women and charges of attempted murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances. They were sentenced to death while six others were given prison sentences.

The Soekmekaar and Silverton trial followed an attack on the Soekmekaar police station on 4 January, 1980 and the Silverton Bank siege on January 25, 1980, in which two civilian women and three MK cadres were killed. The accused were not present at the shoot-out in the bank, but all nine were accused of murdering the two women (according to the common purpose doctrine). The African National Congress called upon the United Nations to impose mandatory sanctions against the South African regime and asked the world community to intervene to save the three condemned men. On 2 June 1982, President Marais Viljoen commuted their death sentences.

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